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The European Development Days, Europe’s leading forum on global development and cooperation, came to a close with a strong emphasis on the linkage between urbanization and economic development of countries. The event, held in proximity to the European Commission and Parliament in Brussels, brought together around 4000 participants, among them political leaders, development practitioners, the private sector and civil society. Its aim is to find practical solutions for some of the world’s most pressing problems. By doing this, it also shapes the EU’s policies for tackling poverty worldwide. UN-Habitat co-organized several sessions under the headline ‘An urban world: challenges and opportunities’, highlighting the important role of urbanization in development.

“Habitat III” is shorthand for a major global summit, formally known as theUnited Nations Conference on Housing and Sustainable Urban Development, that was held in Quito, Ecuador, on 17-20 October 2016.

The United Nations called the conference, the third in a series that began in 1976, to“reinvigorate” the global political commitment to the sustainable development of towns, cities and other human settlements, both rural and urban. The product of that reinvigoration, along with pledges and new obligations, is the New Urban Agenda, which sets global strategy around urbanization for the next two decades.

Third thousand people from 167 countries ultimately attended the four-day event, according to official figures, including some 10,000 global participants. Organizers said that this contsituted the strongest participation ever recorded by local authorities, civil society and other stakeholders at a U. N. conference.

The second session of the Preparatory Committee of the United Nations Conference on Housing and Sustainable Urban Development (Habitat III) was held in Nairobi, Kenya, from Tuesday, 14 April to Thursday, 16 April 2015.

The Inter-Agency Standing Committee (IASC) was established in June 1992 in response to General Assembly Resolution 46/182 to serve as the primary mechanism for inter-agency coordination relating to humanitarian assistance in response to complex and major emergencies under the leadership of the Emergency Relief Coordinator.

For one day on September 19 Stockholm plans to stop the use of motorized vehicles in the city centre.

The initiative is part of the European Mobility Week, a project from the European Commission that seeks to promote sustainable transport. More than 200 cities will participate this year, will join the initiative. Together with Stockholm, two other national capitals—Lisbon, Budapest, —will experiment with a car-free day.

Stockholm has a history of promoting civic sustainability, especially relating to transportation. In 2010, the city won the first European Green Capital award, in part for its low transport emissions, clean water standards, and innovative waste management. A large proportion of its city buses and trains run on renewable fuels, making its share of clean vehicles among the highest in Europe.

The Governing Council is an intergovernmental decision – making body for the United Nations Human Settlements Programme (UN-Habitat). It meets biennially and reports to the General Assembly of the United Nations through the Economic and Social Council, particularly on programmatic issues.

The 25th session of the Governing Council of UN-Habitat took place from 17 - 23 April 2015, at the United Nations Offices in Nairobi, Kenya.

This article is culled from daily press coverage from around the world. It is posted on the Urban Gateway by way of keeping all users informed about matters of interest. The opinion expressed in this article is that of the author and in no way reflects the opinion of UN-Habitat.

UN-Habitat Mr. Gulelat Kebede with the I-KAIST CEO Mr. Sung-Jin Kim signed the Memorandum of Understanding between UN-HABITAT and I-KAIST, a company contributing to knowledge sharing and technology development.